408 The Great Revelation II
by AudiRox
Summary: <html><head></head>Follows a couple of days after the end of episode 4.07 The Great Revelation I. Please read previous episodes if you haven't done so already.</html>
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:** Follows a couple of days after the end of episode 4.07 The Great Revelation I. Please read previous episodes if you haven't done so already.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Merlin. I do not own its characters.

"**The Great Revelation II" – by AudiRox**

A couple of days have passed since Uther sentenced Merlin to be executed. But there he was in his cell in the dark... sleeping. With his eyes shut, he moves his head from one side to the other. He is clearly in a dream. In this dream he is in the cave where the Great Dragon once spent his days. With his torch held high, Merlin looks around. Kilgharrah was nowhere to be found, but the sound of flapping wings makes Merlin look to his left. There he was, the Great Dragon.

As the large creature takes comfort on one of the boulders, Merlin inquires, "Why are you back in the cave?"

"Because you've summoned me, young warlock," says the mighty dragon.

"But this is a dream," says Merlin in confusion. "How have I summoned you in my dream?"

"Your powers have grown, Merlin. Powers you, yourself, aren't aware of." After observing Merlin closely, the dragon asks, "Now, tell me why you have called for me."

"I am to die," says the young man. "Morgana has returned and has somehow fooled Uther into believing that I am responsible for enchanting her."

"Morgana? Enchanted?" the dragon laughs.

Merlin nods.

"Uther is a fool. A fool blinded by guilt. And Morgana is using it to her advantage."

"Why they haven't killed me yet, I don't know," says a worried Merlin.

"You have to get out of there. Morgana is not to be trusted, Emrys."

Merlin looks up at the dragon and rolls his eyes, "You do realize you're stating the obvious?"

"But she is the least of your worries."

"What do you mean?" asks the man curiously.

"That is all I can tell you," the dragon starts to flap his wings. "Soon you will face a greater force, young Emrys." With these words, the dragon flies away.

A confused Merlin wakes up in his cell. "A _greater force_?" he whispers to himself. "More questions," he shakes his head.

The next morning, Arthur, Gaius, Elyan and Percival meet in Gwen's home. Gaius sits at the table across from Percival as Elyan leans against the wall. Arthur stands at the head of the table with his foot resting on the edge of the bench.

"We need to be careful where we meet," says the prince. "I don't want Morgana to have any reason to suspect us."

Elyan speaks up, "Shouldn't Gwen, Leon and Gwaine be here?"

Arthur nods, "I will let them know what we decide here. But I've asked Leon and Gwaine to keep an eye on the king, and Guinevere is keeping Morgana company at the king's request."

"I don't think Gwen is safe anywhere near Morgana," says her protective brother.

Arthur nods.

"Morgana won't dare do anything to make Uther suspect her," Gaius says. "I think Gwen will be fine."

Meanwhile in the courtyard, Morgana and Gwen walk side by side.

"Isn't it a lovely morning?" asks the pale woman.

Gwen fakes a smile, "Yes indeed, milady."

Morgana turns, "Please Gwen, stop calling me that!" She takes her hand, "We are equals."

Gwen is amused that the woman in front of her actually believes that they are equals. "No, Morgana. We are not." With these words, Gwen takes a few steps further.

Morgana isn't happy with Gwen's attitude towards her, but she fakes a smile. "Of course. After everything I've done, I don't deserve to be alive. Or given a second chance."

Gwen takes a deep breath. Knowing very well that she is there for the purpose of keeping Morgana busy while Arthur met with other men of the court, she turns around to face Morgana and to humor her ramblings.

"But I have been given a second chance, Gwen. With all of you and I should be thankful."

Gwen forces a smile.

"I'll do whatever it takes to show everyone that I'm back in peace. All I want is to be with my family. With my father, brother... and you."

Gwen is curious, "What about Morgause? Your sister."

Morgana finds herself speechless for a few moments before she responds, "I thought she was protecting me. But all along she was using me. She had been lying to me this whole time."

As much as she wants to believe her once good friend, Gwen can't help but see right through Morgana's lies.

"I feel betrayed by her, as I'm sure Arthur feels betrayed by Merlin."

Gwen tries really hard not to respond.

To distract them from the topic, Morgana looks around. "Where _is_ Arthur?"

"I believe he's training with his knights," lies Gwen.

Just as Morgana turns to face her companion, Gwen sees Gwaine a few feet away quickly hiding behind the corner of a wall with a disguised person. Gwen can't make out who it is, but sees Gwaine clearly gesturing at Gwen to distract Morgana.

"Oh, umm..." says Gwen as she looks down at her hands.

Morgana curiously observes the woman in front of her, "What is it Gwen?"

"I don't know what has just come over me. I'm not feeling well, Morgana. It must be the sun."

Morgana is curiously concerned.

"Do you mind if we went back inside?" asks Gwen.

"Of course not," Morgana offers her friend assistance as they both walk back.

Gwen subtly looks behind her, acknowledging Gwaine's request.

Back in Gwen's home, Gaius is curious as to how Arthur managed to convince the king to postpone the hanging.

"How did you manage it, Arthur?" asks the old physician.

"I didn't. Geoffrey convinced father that hanging Merlin so publicly will only make the people of Camelot distrust Morgana even more."

Gaius is impressed.

"Let's just say that Geoffrey, like us, has a difficult time believing Morgana."

"He isn't an old fool after all," says Gaius.

Arthur starts to pace. "We need to come up with a way to make Uther see that Morgana is still evil."

"And how do we go about doing that?" asks Gaius. "So far she has shown great restraint, yet I'm sure she won't rest until Camelot is hers."

Percival speaks up, "What about Merlin's special... _abilities_?" Everyone looks at the knight. "Maybe he is our only hope."

Arthur isn't entirely sure about his opinion on Merlin, but he responds. "He is heavily guarded and they are under strict orders by the King. It will be a challenge to get him out of there without causing a raucous."

Just then, Gwaine enters in haste - making everyone look in his direction. "Sire!" he says out loud as he keeps the door open.

"What is it, Sir Gwaine?" asks Arthur wondering if anything had happened back in the castle.

"A visitor for the king, but I saw her before she made it through." He looks out the door and gestures, "Figured she would be in danger if she was caught."

Everyone looks at the doorway in confusion as to who it might be.

"Hunith," says a surprised Gaius as she enters - making him stand up.

Having heard of Merlin's misfortune, Hunith had traveled with no rest to get to Camelot.

Arthur sighs as Gaius walks around the table to assist Hunith to the bench.

Gwaine closes the door behind him as woman looks at Gaius. "Where is my son?" she asks.

"He is fine, Hunith," the old man assures her.

"For how long?" asks an emotional and exhausted mother. "How long until they hang him?"

Arthur feels the need to respond, "We don't know yet. All we know is that he is still alive."

Hunith catches Arthur's eyes, gets on her feet and walks up to him. "Please do not let him die."

"We're going to do everything we can," says the old physician from behind her.

Hunith points at Arthur, "You, sire," she continues, "_you_ need to make sure nothing happens to my son."

Arthur tries to respond, but the woman in front of him continues with tears in her eyes.

"Merlin has been by your side for a long time, making sure no harm came to you. Please, sire... this is your chance to save my son for a change."

Arthur is left speechless as the rest of the men look at each other. The prince sighs as he realizes that it _is_ his responsibility to make sure no harm came Merlin.

Continue onto Chapter Two...

**End Notes:** That was the opening teaser of this final episode. Your reviews are always appreciated. Please do let me know what you think of the episode so far - or of the series so far.

Please note that the second chapter will be the end to my version of the fourth series of Merlin. Stay tuned for the next/final segment.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note:** Second part of 'The Great Revelation II'. Series four finale. Please read previous chapter or previous episodes prior to reading this.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Merlin. I do not own its characters.

"**The Great Revelation II"**_ (continued)_ **– by AudiRox**

Later that day, Arthur, Morgana and Uther are all seated to have their evening meal. Morgana, as before, is sitting to Uther's right, and Arthur, to his left.

"Where is Gwen?" asks the king as he notices her absence. "I thought I specifically asked that she dine with us from now on."

Before Arthur can respond, Morgana chimes in, "She wasn't feeling well, my lord, and decided to stay home."

Arthur curiously observes how quickly Morgana jumps to resume her role as a friend to Guinevere.

"I hope it's nothing serious," says the king as he takes a sip from his goblet.

"Just a slight headache." says Morgana.

The king turns to his son, "Shouldn't you check on her?"

"I have, father," answers the prince, "I will check on her again after dinner." With these words, Arthur turns to Morgana with a tentative expression. Morgana catches him looking at her and so she slightly nods her head with a smile, leaving Arthur uneasy.

"Don't you think it's time she moved into the castle?" asks the king.

Both Morgana and Arthur are surprised at the question.

"Besides, she could keep Morgana company," smiles the king as he gently touches his daughter's hand. Morgana smiles back but it gradually vanishes when Uther continues, "at least until you are King and Gwen is to be your Queen."

This makes Arthur more uneasy. "I don't think Guinevere is ready to move into the castle. Not yet, anyway."

"Don't worry, Arthur. I will try to convince her."

This makes the prince shudder in his seat. He was somewhat pleased with Gwen staying in her own home as he had asked Sir Leon to make sure her house was guarded at all time. The thought of having Gwen even closer to their enemy which would put her in greater danger made him nervous.

"I want to see my son," says Hunith.

Merlin's mother is now staying with Gwen in her small home. The prince decided it would place Hunith in great danger if the king and Morgana knew about her presence in Camelot, and so asked Gwen to keep Hunith out of sight until they found a way to release Merlin.

Gwen turns around from fluffing the pillow on her small bed. "I'm sorry, Hunith. He's heavily guarded and if anyone were to see you, you will definitely be in danger."

Hunith turns to Gwen. "Promise me he will be not harmed."

Gwen isn't sure she has the power to promise such things, but she understands the woman's pain and sympathizes. "I..." she starts, but a voice by the door interrupts them.

"I promise," says the prince. He closes the door behind him and walks over to Hunith. "I promise to do all that I can to save Merlin."

Hunith is happy to hear that. "Thank you."

"Now, you should get some sleep," says Gwen as she assists the tired woman to her only bed.

Arthur walks over to the back of the small house as Gwen tends to Hunith. The younger woman sighs and walks over to her prince.

"Where will you sleep?" he asks softly.

Gwen looks down at the sack of potatoes and smirks, "I'm used to sleeping on the floor when I have guests."

Arthur subtly smiles, but isn't happy with the sleeping arrangements. "Would you like me to stay with you?"

Gwen shakes her head, "No, I'll be fine."

Arthur's subtle smile turns into a genuine one and kisses the kind woman on the forehead, "Let one of the guards outside know if there's anything."

Gwen nods.

After leaving Gwen's house, Arthur decides to pay Merlin a visit. He hasn't seen the young man since Uther had him arrested for the crime of using sorcery to ruin Morgana and the kingdom of Camelot.

The prince walks down to the cells and finds a number of guards aligned against the walls. He walks up to one of them, "Let me in."

The guards obey. After all, he _is_ the prince of Camelot.

As he walks closer to Merlin's cell, he sees a worn and weak Merlin sitting in the corner looking down at his hands. Arthur stops by the couple of men guarding that particular cell, "Open up," he commands softly.

The guards obey again.

"Leave us, I'll be fine."

Just as the prince enters the cell, Merlin looks up and squints his eyes, "Sire?"

The prince sees a log in the corner and pulls it closer to the young man. As he takes a seat, he notices an untouched tray of food on the floor. "Why haven't you eaten?"

Merlin looks back down at the floor, "I can't think of eating when there's a witch up there waiting patiently to destroy Camelot and everyone that I care about."

Arthur can't quite put his finger on it, but he notices that Merlin had changed in the course of just a few days. He has grown up. There was seriousness in his voice that he hadn't heard before. "You smell, but that's nothing new," the prince decides to lighten the mood.

Merlin can't help but chuckle and raise his head again.

"If you want to fight Morgana, you can't do it with an empty stomach."

"Why am I still alive, Arthur?" asks Merlin seriously. "Why haven't I been executed?"

Arthur shakes his head, "I know Morgana would do it herself if she could."

Merlin sighs.

Arthur looks around the cell, "You don't realize how horrible it is down here until you see an innocent man behind bars."

"Want to switch places?" Merlin smirks.

Arthur looks at his servant, "Why don't you use your _magic_ to escape?"

"Escape?" asks an annoyed Merlin. "That would mean I'd have to leave Camelot. And I cannot _leave_ Camelot."

"Why not?"

A frustrated Merlin gets on his feet and throws his hands up in the air, "You really don't get it do you?" he continues, "My destiny is to stay in Camelot and help you fulfill _your_ destiny." He raises his voice, "Why is it so difficult for you to understand that, Arthur?"

Arthur sighs and looks down at his hands, "You can't speak to me that way, Merlin."

Merlin sighs as he realizes he shouldn't have raised his voice. "I'm sorry."

Arthur shrugs.

"I'm also sorry for not telling you the truth all these years."

Silence as Arthur rubs his hands together.

Merlin feels the need to continue, "I know you must feel betrayed."

"I understand why you didn't tell me."

Merlin is surprised. "You do?"

The prince speaks up, "I mean, my father is notorious for executing anyone that's involved with magic. Whether they're good or bad." Arthur frustratingly continues, "And not everything is black and white like he thinks it is."

Merlin nods.

"I was raised believing that all magic is evil, but I don't share that opinion anymore."

Merlin is pleasantly surprised.

Arthur then looks directly at Merlin, "I mean, it has baffled me in the past when we've escaped situations we should never have. It's all starting to make sense."

"So, do you forgive me, Arthur?" the warlock asks as he leans against the wall.

Arthur subtly smiles, "I will get you out of here, Merlin. I promise."

Merlin is thankful, but continues, "Just in case you don't, can you please say goodbye to my mother for me?"

Arthur gets up from the log, "She's here in Camelot."

"What?" asks a shocked Merlin.

"Don't worry," the prince assures his friend, "she's safe."

Before his exit, the prince turns to Merlin. Master and servant. No. Two friends. They nod in unison, acknowledging their friendship.

The next morning, Morgana walks up to Gaius' quarters. Before she enters, she takes a deep breath and forces herself to be civil.

"Morgana?" says Gaius in a surprised tone as the woman enters the quarters unannounced.

"Gaius," says the pale woman with a subtle smile.

Morgause had mentioned to Morgana about Gaius' powers that threw her across the room. Powers that almost took her sister's life. She was unaware that it was Merlin that brought about Morgause's paralysis and not the old physician. Ever since she heard of Gaius' actions, Morgana wanted to rid the world of the physician. But doing so now would create suspicion, and she must fake her sincerity.

Gaius stands guarded, but asks, "What brings you here, Morgana?"

As the woman scans the physician's quarters, she replies, "I was on my way to check on Gwen and was wondering if you had something to ease her headache."

Gaius thinks quickly as he had seen Gwen just the night before and knew very well that the headache was a farce. "Gwen came to me about her headache, and I did give her a simple remedy."

"Oh good," says the woman as she continues to observe her surroundings. Gaius observes her carefully as well. "You know, I've been in here many times over the years, but I never really noticed how immense your collection of books were. Enough to even compete with the royal library." The woman looks directly at the old man.

Tired of putting on a face, Gaius asks directly, "How long are you going to keep this up, Morgana?"

Her signature evil smirk reappears, "As long as it takes."

"You may have fooled Uther, but don't think the rest of Camelot believes you."

"Oh, I'm sure I can find a way to convince them I'm here in peace."

Gaius is curious as to what Morgana has planned.

"Maybe I'll visit Gwen's school." The woman turns to leave.

Gaius speaks up, "Why can't you just leave us alone?"

Morgana quickly turns around, "I won't rest until I take revenge on all of you."

Gaius sees the fire in here eyes.

"It would be too suspicious for me to take care of you right now, or I would. I know about your powers, old man, and I know what you did to Morgause. It was your magic that paralyzed her!"

"But you forget, Morgana. It was your hand that killed her. Your sister." The smug old man looks directly into the witches eyes.

A sudden burst of guilt and sadness hits the pale woman, but she tries hard to compose herself. It is true, Morgana was her sister's murderer. Not being able to process her feelings soon enough, she turns around in rage and storms out of the old physician's home.

Moments later, still stewing in hate and sadness, Morgana walks into the King's chambers, where he is at the table attending to legal matters.

"Father," she says.

Hearing urgency in his daughter's voice, the king looks up, "What is it, Morgana?"

The woman starts to pace as she rubs her hands together, "I don't know how to tell you this, but..."

The king slowly gets on his feet and walks closer to the woman, "But?"

"I have reason to believe that Gaius knew about Merlin all along. He may have been an accomplice."

The king finds this bizarre. "What?"

The king's tone surprises her. She realizes that this may be more difficult to sell to the king. "I mean... I mean, I have no proof of that. But how did that old man not know all these years?"

The king chuckles, "He _is_ old, Morgana. It's quite possible that the boy had easily hid his true nature from the physician."

"But..." says Morgana, still angered by Gaius.

"Also, I trust Gaius. He has been a loyal friend to me for longer than you've been alive. I'm sure you're mistaken." With these words the king goes back to his table.

Morgana forces herself to smile. "Of course." Nervously, she looks around the room, "Well, I'll leave you to your work."

The king nods as the woman exits the room, but something about the exchange makes him uncomfortable.

The interaction not only surprises Morgana, who is used to fooling her father quite easily, but would also be a surprise to Gaius if he had heard the exchange.

Later that night, Morgana sits in her lonely chambers with a dagger in her hand. The dagger she used to take her sister's life. A mistake, but a mistake that was key in convincing her father of her loyalty to him. As she takes a closer look at the weapon, she realizes that it has druid markings on it. _"Emer's perhaps,"_ she thinks. But the image in her mind of her sister's death makes her cry. With tears flowing down, she softly says, "I'm sorry, dear sister." She holds the dagger closer to her chest, "I don't know if I can go through with this. I don't know what I'm doing anymore. This isn't what I wanted. Please forgive me."

Unbeknown to her, a stranger appears from the dark shadows in her room. "You must leave Camelot," he says.

Morgana quickly gets up from her bed and holds up the dagger. "Who are you?"

The man steps further away from the shadow and into the light emitting from the candles nearby and pulls down his hood revealing his bright blue eyes.

"Emer?" asks Morgana.

"I've come to collect you." Morgana is still on edge as she had never heard him speak before. His hauntingly deep voice makes her shiver.

"Collect me?" she scoffs. "You're here to take me back to Lot."

Emer stays quiet.

"Well, tell him Morgause is dead," she starts to cry. "And I don't know where her body is."

"We know she's dead."

Morgana is confused. "_Why isn't he attacking me?_" she asks herself.

"You're not safe here. No one believes you, except Uther."

With tears flowing down her cheeks, she stubbornly replies, "Well, I'm not leaving until I have destroyed the Pendragons!"

"As you wish," bows the blue-eyed man. He pulls up his hood, swiftly moves to the window, opens it and disappears.

With tears flowing freely down her cheeks, she sits back on her bed. She takes a deep breath and lies down.

Meanwhile, the king decides he needs to speak with the old physician and asks for him. Sir Leon opens the door to the king's chambers.

"The physician, my lord," says the tall knight.

"Sire? You asked for me?" asks Gaius as he enters the king's chambers.

"Gaius," says the king as he turns around by the window. "Thank you for coming at this late hour."

"Of course, my lord."

"Thank you, Sir Leon," says the king as he walks closer to the physician.

"What is it, sire?" Gaius asks as Leon closes the door behind him.

The king isn't sure how to pose his question, yet he continues anyway. "How much do you know about Merlin?"

Gaius is surprised by the question, and even more surprised to hear the young man's name uttered by the king. It was a rare occurrence. "What do you mean, sire?"

"How much of his past do you know? Did you know he was a sorcerer?"

Gaius is put in a very awkward situation that could also lead to his own peril, and so he takes a moment to think. "He isn't evil, sire."

Uther looks directly at the old man. "So, you're saying you knew of his powers?"

"I'm saying that his powers kept Arthur out of harms way."

A sudden look of surprise appears on Uther's face.

"His powers kept us all out of harm's way."

"Are you accusing my daughter of lying?" asks the stern king.

Boldly, the old physician steps forward, "Among other things, yes."

The king starts to pace, "And here I was defending you to her, yet she was correct. You are an accomplice."

Gaius looks down with a hint of sadness, "Do you really believe that, Uther?"

"Who do I believe?" asks the stubborn king. "My physician or my own daughter?"

Gaius realizes what he has gotten himself into and so he sees no harm in telling the truth. "Morgana is evil, Uther. She has you fooled. She has tortured and killed many of our own people. Yet she did not break our spirit!"

Uther is surprised.

"Thanks to Merlin, we're all still here."

"Enough," says the king softly.

But the old man doesn't stop. "She continues to fool you."

"Stop."

"You've known me for too many years to doubt my loyalty, Uther."

The king starts to breathe loudly.

"The kind and generous Morgana we knew is long gone, sire. Why can't you see that? That Morgana is dead."

"Gaius!" shouts the king. "Enough!"

"Sire, you have to listen to me..." the old physician earnestly steps forward.

"Guards!" shouts the discombobulated king.

The guards outside the door enter, followed by a confused Leon.

"Arrest this man!"

"My lord?" asks Leon looking at Gaius and back at the king.

"You heard me! Arrest this man!"

The guards quickly grab hold of Gaius' arms, but Leon loosens the grasp of one of the guards and decides to take Gaius himself. "Yes, my lord." The knight is clearly confused at to why he's arresting the kingdom's esteemed physician, and also the king's friend and sometimes counsel.

Just as they turn to exit the chambers, the king surprises the knight and Gaius. "Oh, make preparations for the hanging tomorrow afternoon. We've kept Merlin alive long enough."

This leaves Gaius and Leon speechless, but they exit the chambers.

With the men gone, Uther paces. He seems troubled, almost as if Gaius' words really did hit him hard. The truth is often difficult to bear.

As Leon escorts Gaius down the hallway, he gestures at the guard to go on his way. "I'll take care of him," he says to the guard.

As the guard obeys and walks back up the hallway, Gaius looks up at Leon as they continue to walk.

"We need to talk to Arthur," says Leon softly as he looks around to make sure no one is around to hear.

"You may do that Sir Leon," says the old man, "but we don't want any suspicion of the knights questioning the king's orders, so be careful."

Leon stops and turns to the old physician. "Surely I cannot arrest you."

"But the king says you must. And arrest me you shall."

Leon is frustrated, "For what crime?"

Gaius sighs, "Please just take me to Merlin."

Leon sighs, but grants the physician's request.

"Gaius!" says Merlin as he hurries to the bars. He realizes by the look on Leon's face that Gaius is not just visiting.

"Merlin!" says Gaius as he enters Melins' cell.

The two men embrace briefly.

"Thank you, Leon." says the physician to the knight as he closes the cell.

"What are you doing here?" asks the young warlock.

"I have just been arrested," says the physician with an amused expression on his face. "For being an accomplice to your supposed crimes."

A frustrated Merlin grunts, "Argh! Morgana!"

Gaius nods.

"Why doesn't Arthur just take over? Everyone knows Uther is no longer stable to make any decisions. The knights support Arthur!"

Gaius sighs, "But put yourself in Arthur's shoes. Would you so easily do that to your own father?"

Merlin sighs as he realizes Arthur's dilemma.

Silence as Merlin begins to pace by the wall.

"Merlin," says the physician.

Merlin turns around.

"You have to get out of here."

"But if I left Camelot, it's at the risk of not fulfilling my destiny."

Gaius is angered, "Forget the destiny!"

This surprises Merlin.

The old man takes a step towards Merlin. "You're to hang in the square tomorrow afternoon. You have to get out of here before then."

Merlin is surprised by the news. He had wondered when that day would be.

The next morning, the king arrives at the doors to Morgana's chambers. He knocks on them. "Morgana?" he asks.

Silence.

He knocks again. "Morgana, are you in there?"

More silence.

Deciding to open the door himself, he turns the handle and enters. He finds his daughter still sleeping in her bed. He takes a few steps closer and sees the pale woman, who is now paler, holding onto a dagger as she sleeps. The king takes in the image of the dagger, but decides to dismiss its importance as he places a hand on her forehead. "Fever," he says softly. "Morgana?" he gently touches her arm. He looks around and finds an open window in the chambers. She has surely caught something overnight. "Guard! Sir Gwaine!" shouts the king. "Get Gaius!"

The knight arrives at the door and sees a paler Morgana on the bed and decides to take upon the task of getting Gaius himself. "Yes, my lord!"

Moments later, Gwaine arrives at Merlin and Gaius' cell. "Gaius! The king's asking for you. It seems Morgana has a fever."

Both Merlin and Gaius are curious and so they look at each other. As Gwaine opens the cell, Gaius turns to Merlin. "This is your chance to get out of here, Merlin."

Gwaine wonders what the physician means, but it seems Merlin is quite aware of Gaius' meaning.

"But it's risky, Gaius. The hanging is this afternoon."

"You will think of something, I'm sure."

Moments later, Gwaine escorts Gaius, or someone who looks like him down the hall.

"This is just wrong," says Gwaine.

The old man smirks.

Gwaine chuckles, "I can't believe I just witnessed what happened in that cell."

Back in the cell, Gaius disguised as Merlin observes how young he feels.

"Sire," says the old man to Uther as he enters the chambers.

Uther is now sitting by Morgana's side holding her hand. "Gaius, please... she has a very high fever." The king quickly gets up from the bed but takes care to also grab the dagger that was in her hand.

Merlin, disguised at Gaius, clears his throat as he gets closer to Morgana. He places his hand on her forehead and feels that she indeed has a fever. "It's just a slight fever, sire."

"The window was open when I came in this morning."

"Ah, it's just the chill, then. I'll have someone get a vial of medicine for her fever to go down."

With great strain, Uther looks down at his daughter. "Thank you, Gaius."

For the first time, Merlin notices Uther's very worn eyes. He sees pain in them as he had never seen before. The many years he had been a servant, he was never able to stand this close to the king and witness such a thing, and so he takes time to move away from Uther. He takes a quill from the table by the wall, scribbles something on a piece of paper and hands it to the guard standing beside him. "You can find a vial of this in Gaius'..." he clears his throat, "in my quarters."

The guard nods and walks out.

The old man turns around and sees Uther standing still with his hand holding the dagger so tightly. "Should I go back to the cell, sire?"

"No," says the king quickly and turns around. "Wait here until I fetch Gwen. She seems to be good at these sorts of things."

"Have one of the guards fetch her."

"No, I will. I need to speak with my son as well."

Having heard of Gaius' previous exchange with Uther, Merlin is curious. And so he takes a few steps closer to the king and inquires, "Do you trust me to look after her until you return, sire?"

Uther takes a moment to look at Gaius' face. "You are an honest man, Gaius. You're not a murderer."

With these words, the king leaves the chambers. Leaving Merlin alone with Morgana.

Merlin looks down at the woman and sighs. He could very well take her out right there, but Uther is right... he isn't a murderer.

It is almost noon, and with the recent events with Morgana suddenly falling ill, Uther had temporarily postponed the hanging of Merlin. Instead, he is occupied in searching for Gwen. After searching throughout the castle, including her classroom, one of the guards suggests that she may still be home. With just a couple of guards behind him, Uther decides to walk over to her home.

As he nears the home of the former servant, he hears a few voices inside. Instead of knocking he pushes the door in to find more than just Gwen. Arthur, Gwaine, Leon, Elyan, Percival, a couple of other knights and a familiar woman have gathered in Gwen's house. But Gwen is nowhere in sight.

"ARTHUR!" shouts the king as he enters.

"Father!" Arthur is caught off guard.

The knights, in unison, aren't sure how to react.

"What is this?" commands the king as he walks around the table.

"Father, I..." starts the prince, but realizes he will do not good to cover up the truth. "We have been meeting here privately to discuss strategies."

"Strategies?" asks the king. "What strategies?" He looks at the older woman sitting in the corner looking terrified and walks over to her, "Aren't you the sorcerer's mother?" he demands.

"Merlin is my son," she says softly as she gets up on her feet.

"What is going on here?" the king demands as he turns around.

"Father," says Arthur, "please hear us out. Morgana has you fooled."

A very aggravated Uther turns to his son, "How dare you..."

It is clear that Arthur's patience has run out. "We do not believe her, sire. Why can't you see that she's trying to deceive us all?" shouts the prince.

"Stop this nonsense!" shouts back the king.

Just then, Gwen, hearing the raucous in her house, runs in. "Arthur!"

"What are you going to do? Arrest the whole of Camelot? _No one_ believes her lies but you!"

A very angry Uther steps forward, challenging his son. "How dare you speak to your sovereign this way!"

The knights maneuver around to position themselves if there were to be a fight, but the king, unaware of his own weak condition, almost stumbles as he moves forward. He grabs his chest as he struggles to regain his balance.

"Stop it!" shouts Gwen as she forces herself to stand between the two men. She looks at the knights, "Leon, Gwaine, Elyan," she calls out, "please escort the king back to the castle. And make sure Gaius is called upon."

The knights obey their future queen.

Feeling weak, Uther does not object. And so the king of Camelot is escorted back to his chambers inside the castle.

Moments later, Merlin disguised as Gaius, is softly speaking to Gwaine inside the King's chambers. "We need to get Gaius out of the stocks. I don't know how to tend to this."

"And how do you suggest we do that? The guards are under strict orders from the king."

"You're the knights of his court, can't you come up with something?"

Gwaine rolls his eyes, "I will see what I can do." The knight takes leave.

"Gaius?" says a groggy king from his bed.

"Sire," the old man walks over to him.

"I need to..." says the king as he tries to get up from his bed.

"No, no... you need to rest," says the old man.

Merlin does not care either way about the king's health, but he knows that Arthur does and that alone gives him the strength to move beyond the king's faults.

Realizing he has no strength to sit up, the king gives up and just lies in his bed. "Why am I so weak, and so suddenly?"

The old man wrings out a cloth and dabs it on his forehead. "You've been under a lot of stress lately. I'm sure it's just catching up, sire."

Uther takes a few deep breaths. "I just wish there was no magic in this world. No evil."

Merlin frowns but tries hard not to blow his cover. "You know all magic isn't evil, Uther. Magic did save your daughter's life."

Uther acknowledges that he himself have used it for his own benefit.

Silence.

"What would you do Gaius? If you had to choose between your child's lie and the word of a servant, which would you choose?"

"Even if the servant is innocent?" asks Merlin.

"Yes, even if the servant is innocent."

Once again Merlin sees the pain in the king's eyes. He almost begins to understand Uther's plight. "Are you saying you believe Merlin is innocent."

Uther closes his eyes, "I have no doubt in my mind. He has been a loyal servant to my son. Whatever _magic_ he may have used was to protect all of us."

A sad expression appears on the old man's face. "Then do the right thing, Uther."

Meanwhile, having heard of Morgana's sudden illness, Gwen arrives in her chambers to find a servant tending to her fever.

"Leave us," says Gwen as she takes over. "Thank you."

The servant nods and walks out the open door.

"Gwen," says a slowly recovering Morgana. "where is Uther?"

"Shh," says Gwen as she dabs the woman's forehead with a warm towel.

Morgana observes Gwen closely. "_Why is she being kind to me?_" she thinks.

Despite everything that had happened in the past couple of years, Gwen decides to give her all in tending to the woman in front of her. "I've been told your fever has gone down considerably."

Morgana forces a smile, but realizes that Emer and Gaius were correct. No one believes her except foolish old Uther. "_I must leave Camelot,_" she thinks. "_I will return when I'm well and ready._" Morgana sits up. "I'm feeling a lot better, Gwen."

Gwen stops dabbing the woman's forehead with the warm cloth and decides to stand up. "I'm glad," she says with a tentative expression.

Morgana smiles.

"Well, I should get back to my work. If you need anything, please let us know."

"I will, thank you."

The moment Gwen closes the chambers behind her, Morgana slowly gets up from her bed and starts to walk around the room and gather things.

Back in Uther's chambers, Arthur arrives to check on his father. Merlin (disguised as Gaius) gets up from the chair by the king's bed.

"Arthur," says the old man as he walks up to him.

The prince looks at his father on the bed with his eyes closed. "How is he?"

"Better I think, but we really need to get Gaius in here," he says softly, not realizing that to everyone else, he _is_ Gaius.

Arthur looks down at the old man in confusion. "But you _are_ Gaius."

The old man shrugs.

"Aren't you?" says a completely baffled Arthur.

"Well..."

"Merlin!" says the prince. "How on earth," he looks up and down at the old man. "Never mind, I don't want to know how."

"Shh, you will wake up your father."

Arthur turns his attention back to the king. "I will stay with him. You go and find a way to get Merlin, I mean _Gaius_ out of there." The prince takes a couple of steps closer and takes a seat in the chair next to his bed.

The old man nods and exits as the prince directs all his attention to the weak man lying in front of him.

Arthur pulls the chair closer to the bed and sighs as he hangs his head and looks down at his hands.

Merlin (disguised at Gaius) walks down the stairway to the cells. He sees Gwaine down at the bottom.

"Gwaine! Any luck?"

Gwaine turns around to see the old man descending the stairs. "I'm on my way right now."

The two men walk up to the guards that have been ordered to keep Merlin locked up.

"We are to release Merlin," says Gwaine to one of the guards.

"King's orders," lies the old man.

Gaius (disguised at Merlin) looks up when he hears the voices close by.

"I did not get such orders," says the guard.

Gwaine isn't fond of being questioned.

Merlin sees Gwaine's expression and decides to cut in before the knight decides to pull out his sword. "The king is under the weather and is taking rest, but he specifically asked that Merlin be released. Would you like to interrupt his sleep to confirm it yourself? I'm sure he won't take kindly to you questioning the word of a royal knight."

Gwaine is impressed.

The guard frowns but decides to let the men through.

"That was easy," Gwaine says softly as they make their way through the first entrance.

Moments later, Arthur, Gaius, Merlin, Geoffrey of Monmouth, Leon, Percival, Elyan and Gwaine gather outside Uther's chambers as he continues to rest. Gwen arrives just in time for the meeting, with her, she brings Hunith.

"Mother!" shouts Merlin as he embraces the woman.

"You're alive," says a relieved mother.

Everyone happily looks at the reunion.

"Thank you," says the woman as she turns to Arthur.

Arthur smiles and nods.

"What do we do now?" asks Gwaine.

Geoffrey looks at the prince, "This is your chance to take care of the witch once and for all, sire."

Arthur nods, and turns to Merlin. "What do you have for us?"

"With the help of Gwen," Merlin smiles at the woman next to him, "we were able to plant a poultice in Morgana's chambers. It seems she is planning on leaving Camelot tonight."

Arthur nods again, "We must guard her at all times," he says softly. "And we mustn't trouble the king with our plans."

Everyone in unison agrees that the king must be left out of this decision.

"She won't take kindly to being restricted, I'm sure she will react. We'll let nature take its course."

Gwen observes with caution. "We can't let her hurt anymore people."

Arthur looks at his future queen and nods. He then looks at his men, "You know what to do. Make sure the gates are secured."

With these words, everyone but Arthur and Gwen leave to take care of their tasks.

"Guinevere," says Arthur as he takes a step closer.

"Be careful, Arthur." She meets him halfway and places a hand on his chest, "She is after your throne and will do anything to get it."

Arthur nods, "I will be careful." The prince leans in and gives her a kiss on the lips. "Make sure you stay safe. If any harm comes to you, I would never forgive myself."

Gwen subtly smiles as she nods.

Later that evening, Morgana decides to escape from Camelot. She opens the door and looks outside her chambers to find two guards positioned by her doors.

Once of the guards turns, "Is there anything I can help you with, my lady?"

"No, thank you," Morgana forces a smile. "I just wanted to go for a walk."

The two guards look at each other. "I'm sorry my lady, we cannot allow it."

Morgana is annoyed, "Allow it? Do you know who I am?"

"We've been given orders."

"Orders? Orders by whom?" demands Morgana.

"Prince Arthur commands that you stay in your chambers until further notice."

Morgana can't help but laugh, "Arthur commands me?"

The guards are clearly uncomfortable. They know that the woman in front of them can take them out at any time, but their loyalty lies with Camelot. One of the guards steps forward to escort Morgana back to her chambers, but the woman suddenly reacts.

"Perde pereant!" shouts Morgana with fire in her eyes.

With these words, the two guards suddenly collapse on the floor, setting Morgana free to do whatever she wants.

Hearing the raucous, Arthur, followed by a few guards start to run up the hallway in the direction of the noise. Their footsteps make Morgana hurry down the opposite directly of the hallway.

She finds herself near the king's chambers. So instead of running even further through the hallways, she decides to hide in the king's chambers until the guards run past it. She quickly opens the doors and close them after she enters. She looks around to find Uther wide awake and sitting in his bed.

"Morgana," says Uther in surprise.

"Father," says the woman not realizing he would be in his chambers. She sees his weakened state and walks a few steps closer. "It seems you're the only one that believes me, sire," she fakes sincerity. "The whole of Camelot is after me."

Uther manages to stand up. He takes a few steps towards his daughter. "I'm sorry they do not believe you."

Morgana wonders if she can fool her way out of this, "We don't need them, father."

"What do you mean?" asks the king.

"Give me the word, and I can destroy anyone that stands in our way."

With intense eyes, Uther continues to listen.

"You need a strong ruler for this kingdom," the woman says as she slowly steps closer to her father. "Arthur is weak, father. You know he's weak. He can't handle the people of Camelot."

Uther isn't sure what to make of her rambling.

Morgan takes one more step and touches her father's shoulder. "I'm on your side."

Morgana's fake smile suddenly vanishes at the end of her sentence when a dagger is pushed into her abdomen... by Uther himself. "No," he says softly. "I won't let you harm my son."

An expression of shock and immense pain appears on Morgana's face. Just then, the doors swing open and in comes a tall man in a hooded cloak, also known as Emer. He runs to Morgana's side, but when Uther tries to attack him, he draws his sword and pierces Uther's torso. Just as this happens, Arthur and Merlin run into the chambers to find a strange man carrying Morgana as Uther falls to the ground.

"FATHER!" shouts Arthur.

"Stop!" shouts Merlin. "You cannot escape!"

Emer looks directly into Merlin's eyes, making the younger warlock curious about the man.

"I trust you to take good care of this kingdom, my son," says a fading Uther.

"No, you're not going to die."

"I love you, Arthur."

Knights, Gwaine, Elyan and Percival, followed by guards start to storm into the small space making it difficult for anyone to escape, but the strange man with bright blue eyes start chanting something in a foreign language.

"Oharra gurekin eusten horretatik. Garamatza seguruagoa lurrean."

With these words, the castle walls start to rattle. A sudden burst of flames start to circle the strange man and Morgana. With one swift movement, their bodies burst into flames and they vanish into thin air.

"What on earth just happened?" shouts Gwaine.

"Get Gaius!" shouts Arthur. The prince is holding his father as he slips deep into darkness.

A couple of the knights run out of the chambers.

Gwaine turns to his friend, Merlin. "Who was that?"

Merlin, still shocked from the strength of the strange pale man, shakes his head. "I have no idea."

The two friends turn their attention to the king on the floor and his son, trying desperately to hold onto his father.

Early next morning, having heard of the events that had taken place the night before, the people of Camelot walk around their city with solemn faces.

Inside the castle, everyone of importance stands outside the king's chambers waiting for word of his physical state.

Arthur arrives at the doors. He takes a moment before entering his father's space. As he enters, he sees the expression on the faces of Gaius, Merlin, Geoffrey and Gwen, who had been tending to the king's wounds.

Gwen stands up with tears slowly flowing down her cheeks. "Arthur," she says softly as Gaius turns and walks towards the prince.

Arthur can't help but look at the lifeless man laying on the bed.

"I'm sorry, sire," says Gaius.

Merlin observes with sadness in his heart. For years, he had despised the king and his hatred of magic - but after the past few days, it had seemed as if the king had changed. Regardless, it took great strength for Uther to try and rid the world of his own daughter for the safety of Camelot. If nothing else, the young warlock couldn't deny that.

Arthur is frozen in place.

Silence as everyone observes Arthur.

"Leave us," Arthur says, wanting time alone with his father's body.

Everyone nods and walks towards the exit, even Gwen. But Arthur stops her by holding her hand as she tries to walk past him.

Just as the men close the doors behind them, Arthur releases Gwen's hand and walks to his father. He kneels beside the bed and takes his father's hand. Tears start to fill his eyes. He begins to cry freely, making Gwen rush to his side.

"I'm sorry, Arthur," she says as she kneels down beside him and pulls him into an embrace.

The scene fades into a day later in the main square.

A day of mourning is observed by the whole of Camelot as the prince walks up to the funeral pyre. He extends his torch and lights it as everyone, including Gwen, Merlin, Gaius, the knights of Camelot and Geoffrey watch on in solemn silence.

"It is time for a new king," Geoffrey says softly as they witness the pyre light up with flames.

A couple of days later, in an unknown location, a pale Morgana opens her eyes. She feels pain in her ribs, but she looks down and sees that her wound has carefully with much success been taken care of. Still laying down on a hard surface in the middle of the room, she looks to her right to find a glass case. To her surprise, in the glass case is Morgause's lifeless body.

"Sister!" she says as she struggles to get up. But just as she manages to push herself up, someone's footsteps make her look at the exit.

"Lot," she says surprised.

"Lady Morgana," says the king as Emer emerges from the back.

"Is she alive?" asks Morgana as she looks back at the glass case.

"No," says an angry king.

Tears start form in Morgana's eyes. "I'm sorry, sister," she says softly.

"Sadly, she cannot hear you," says the sarcastic king.

Looking down at her hands, Morgana asks, "Why haven't you killed me yet? Why did you rescue me?"

"Oh, I would've loved to take your life for what you did to your own sister."

Morgana looks up at the king.

"The only reason you're still alive is because you once saved my son."

This surprising news makes Morgana confused. "Your son?"

"I believe you may remember him by the name of Mordred."

Shocked, Morgana gets on her feet. "But..."

"Morgause and I thought it best he be raised by the Druids."

"What?" says Morgana as she looks at her sister's dead body.

"Mordred is your nephew."

Morgana's heart starts to race.

"We've looked everywhere but haven't been able to find him. That's why Morgause decided to come here... to find her son."

"I don't understand," says Morgana.

"Once you've completely healed, you will help me find my son, Morgana. You will travel with Emer," he looks back at his loyal servant. "and you will not return to Lothian until you find him and bring him back to me."

Scene fades on Morgana's discombobulated face.

A few weeks later, back in Camelot, the coronation of King Arthur takes place as Merlin, Gwen, Gaius and others watch on with smiles.

"...I pronounce you, Arthur, King of Camelot," says Geoffrey of Monmouth as he crowns the man kneeling in front of him.

Celebrations are under way everywhere in the kingdom.

Later that day, Arthur is up on the roof of the castle looking over the kingdom. His kingdom. He is joined by Merlin. Footage of Morgana and Emer traveling on horses through the woods simultaneously occur as Merlin joins Arthur up on the rooftop.

"May I join you?" asks Merlin.

Arthur briefly looks behind him, "Yes, you may Merlin." He pauses to look at the man quizzically. "You _are_ Merlin?"

He chuckles. "How does it feel to be king?" asks the young warlock.

"I don't know," says Arthur as he continues to look at his kingdom. with a tentative expression.

Merlin looks over the wall as well. "It's a beautiful day."

"A new era."

Merlin nods.

"Do you think she is still alive?" asks Arthur as he continues to look on.

"I wouldn't be surprised if she was," Merlin responds.

Arthur briefly turns to his servant, adviser and friend and nods. "Next time, we'll be prepared."

Merlin subtly smiles at his friend and sovereign, but decides to joke about a certain impending event, "But there are other things to focus on."

"Like what?"

Merlin grins, "A certain wedding."

Arthur blushes but rolls his eyes.

"Are you blushing?" asks Merlin.

"No, I'm not," Arthur dismisses it quickly.

"Oh, I'm pretty sure I just saw you blush."

"Get away from me Merlin, or I'm going to have you arrested."

"For what crime?" asks Merlin as he frowns as magic is no longer outlawed in the kingdom.

"For annoying the King of Camelot," says a smug Arthur as he walks away from the wall.

Merlin smiles.

Scene fades.

End of series four.

**End Notes:** There it is, the final episode of my version of the fourth series. I hope you enjoyed this and the previous episodes. It was more character-based than action.

Please do let me know your thoughts. I always love reading your feedback. It is, in its own way, an inspiration to most writers. I know a lot of you have asked why I don't write 13 episodes like the actual TV series. I really wish I had the time to, but I don't. Think of this as a series of major episodes, with the filler-episodes left out. I won't rule out future writing, but as far as this particular series goes, this will be it from me. If you would like more AudiRox-verse, I'd recommend searching for _AudiRox_ on YouTube and watching the video titled, 'Once & Future' - if you haven't done so already.

I consider myself more of a storyteller who isn't particularly good at writing, so your overwhelming support throughout the series was a surprise. Thank you so much for reading! It has been a pleasure.


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